{"id":11200,"date":"2026-07-20T04:57:29","date_gmt":"2026-07-19T23:57:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=11200"},"modified":"2026-07-20T04:57:29","modified_gmt":"2026-07-19T23:57:29","slug":"spain-tops-argentina-to-win-world-cup-on-ferran-torres-extra-time-goal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=11200","title":{"rendered":"Spain tops Argentina to win World Cup on Ferran Torres\u2019 extra-time goal"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<br \/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/twt-thumbs.washtimes.com\/media\/image\/2026\/07\/19\/APTOPIX_Argentina_Spain_WCup_Soccer_76117_s1440x960.jpg?f72536d07237fdd262042ae8f5e6e6de3b865f3c\" \/><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. \u2014 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/ferran-torres\/\">Ferran Torres<\/a>\u2019 first goal of this year\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/world-cup\/\">World Cup<\/a> was the goal of his life, and it put <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/spain\/\">Spain<\/a> back atop the soccer world.<\/p>\n<p>Denying <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/lionel-messi\/\">Lionel Messi<\/a> a second straight title in what he has indicated would be his final <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/world-cup\/\">World Cup<\/a> match, Torres came off the bench and scored in the 106th minute and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/spain\/\">Spain<\/a> &#8211; in a match it simply dominated &#8211; ended <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/argentina\/\">Argentina\u2019s<\/a> reign with a 1-0 win on Sunday.<\/p>\n<p>Torres pounced on a bouncing ball in the box and used his left foot to bury a shot just under the crossbar and into the back of the net.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was a goal scored by 47 million people,\u201d Torres said, referring to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/spain\/\">Spain\u2019s<\/a> population.<\/p>\n<p>Maybe not by them &#8211; but certainly for them.<\/p>\n<p>It was <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/spain\/\">Spain\u2019s<\/a> second title, this trophy getting added to the one claimed in 2010. And there\u2019s no question about the center of the soccer universe now, not after this display.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/spain\/\">Spain<\/a> allowed only one goal in eight matches at the tournament, setting a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/world-cup\/\">World Cup<\/a> record for fewest goals allowed by a champion. And this title, combined with the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/world-cup\/\">World Cup<\/a> won by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/spain\/\">Spain\u2019s<\/a> women in 2023, makes the European nation the first to hold both the men\u2019s and women\u2019s titles simultaneously.<\/p>\n<aside>\n<\/aside>\n<p>The score indicates this match was close, but only one team was in command.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/spain\/\">Spain<\/a> took the game\u2019s first 20 shots on goal before <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/argentina\/\">Argentina<\/a> &#8211; desperate for an equalizer &#8211; got its first attempt off in the second half of extra time. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/spain\/\">Spain<\/a> took nine of the game\u2019s first 10 corner kicks, and only a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/world-cup\/\">World Cup<\/a> final-record 12 saves by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/argentina\/\">Argentina<\/a> goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez gave the 2022 champions a shot at going back-to-back.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/spain\/\">Spain<\/a> is now unbeaten in its last 38 matches &#8211; 29 wins, nine draws &#8211; and now is the outright holder of the longest such streak by any European team ever. Italy went 37 matches (28 wins, nine draws) from October 2018 through September 2021, before <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/spain\/\">Spain<\/a> ended that streak.<\/p>\n<p>And for the last two-plus years, nobody has beaten <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/spain\/\">Spain<\/a>. Not even Messi. An <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/argentina\/\">Argentina<\/a> team that was the kings of the late-game rally in this tournament had no answer this time.<\/p>\n<p>Messi took a corner kick with about four minutes left before the final whistle and the ball took a fortunate skip toward reserve Giuliano Simeone \u2014 who sent it high and over the crossbar, holding his head in disbelief afterward.<\/p>\n<p>The win made <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/spain\/\">Spain<\/a> coach Luis de la Fuente, at 65, the oldest coach ever to lead a team to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/world-cup\/\">World Cup<\/a> title.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe are world champions,\u201d de la Fuente said. \u201cIt was together we reached this stage.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>There was some pushing and shoving after the final whistle, which was quickly cleaned up and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/spain\/\">Spain<\/a> commenced its celebration as most <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/argentina\/\">Argentina<\/a> players sat on the turf in disbelief. Cooler heads prevailed, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/spain\/\">Spain\u2019s<\/a> players lined up minutes later to form an honor guard of sorts for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/argentina\/\">Argentina\u2019s<\/a> squad to walk through on its way to the stage for the runner-up medals.<\/p>\n<p>Enzo Fernandez was sent off in second-half stoppage time after getting his second yellow card, meaning <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/argentina\/\">Argentina<\/a> was forced to finish the match with only 10 players. Fernandez was carded for a reckless play that sent <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/spain\/\">Spain<\/a> defender Pau Cubarsi cartwheeling into the air, and the card came out immediately.<\/p>\n<p>It was the 104th and last match of the biggest <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/world-cup\/\">World Cup<\/a> ever, a 48-team event that played out over the U.S., Canada and Mexico. Because there were more matches than any previous <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/world-cup\/\">World Cup<\/a>, it was no surprise that there were more goals than all other editions.<\/p>\n<p>The spectacle was not limited to simply soccer.<\/p>\n<p>Celebrities \u2014 from all walks of life \u2014 were there. Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise, Matt Damon, Will Ferrell, Cillian Murphy, Daniel Craig, Jennifer Connelly, Jennifer Hudson, Jon Hamm, Matthew Broderick and Sarah Jessica Parker were among the actors at the game.<\/p>\n<p>The NBA had enough talent there for a full All-Star Game, with the list of players attending including Stephen Curry, Victor Wembanyama, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Bronny James, Cade Cunningham, Cooper Flagg, Devin Booker, Donovan Mitchell, Draymond Green, Jalen Brunson, Jalen Williams, James Harden, Jaylen Brown, Karl-Anthony Towns, Kevin Durant and Tyrese Haliburton.<\/p>\n<p>Serena Williams and Carlos Alcaraz were among the tennis royalty watching, the NFL had names like Eli Manning, Patrick Mahomes, Odell Beckham Jr. and Saquon Barkley in attendance, two of the greatest U.S. skiers ever in Mikaela Shiffrin and Lindsey Vonn were at the match &#8211; and, of course, there were soccer royalty with the likes of Kaka, David Beckham, Didier Drogba and Zinedine Zidane.<\/p>\n<p>They came to see a show. So did 80,000 other people, not to mention perhaps as many as 2 billion watching around the globe.<\/p>\n<p>                        <a name=\"pagebreak\"\/><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtontimes.com\/topics\/spain\/\">Spain<\/a> didn\u2019t disappoint.<\/p>\n<div class=\"permission\" style=\"padding-top: 25px;\">\n<p>Copyright \u00a9 2026 The Washington Times, LLC.\n                        <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. \u2014 Ferran Torres\u2019 first goal of this year\u2019s World Cup was the goal of his life, and it put Spain back atop the soccer world. Denying Lionel Messi a second straight title in what he has indicated would be his final World Cup match, Torres came off the bench and scored in&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":11201,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/twt-thumbs.washtimes.com\/media\/image\/2026\/07\/19\/APTOPIX_Argentina_Spain_WCup_Soccer_76117_c0-145-3487-2179_s1200x700.jpg?eab04c9dc26fa0956e8cba84a0637a6b6e9088fa","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11200","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news-hub"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11200","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=11200"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11200\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/11201"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=11200"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=11200"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=11200"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}